2/1 Niall to make punters smile

Live on BBC2 Scot: Sun 12.45: Aberdeen’s Niall McGinn is 2/1 (Stan James) to score in the Scottish Cup semi-final with St Johnstone.

Trophies could be like the proverbial buses for Aberdeen, who waited 19 years to land a pot and should find themselves on the verge of picking up another just a few weeks later as they take on St Johnstone in the cup semi-final.

The in-form Dons are a solid bet at 11/10 via Stan James to get the better of the Perthshire outfit (13/5, Skybet) and their form against Saints this season should give punters a decent indicator of how the Ibrox showdown will ultimately pan out.

Derek McInnes’s boys have faced St Johnstone four times in all competitions, coming out on top and drawing once and crucially they haven’t conceded a single goal in those encounters. Perhaps not surprisingly then, there’s already been money for a Dons success ‘to nil’ at 12/5 courtesy of BetVictor while Ladbrokes price them at 13/2 to shade it 1-0.

Winner.com go 9/1 about Aberdeen notching twice without reply and the heftier odds will lure one or two punters but Tommy Wright’s troops are in decent shape at the minute, coming into the contest on the back of just two defeats in their last nine so it appears a touch risky to pile into a stroll in the park for McInnes’s charges.

Indeed, a case can be made for the Dons to shade it by one at 14/5 courtesy of Ladbrokes and BetVictor post 17/4 against them emerging victorious despite going in on level terms at the interval.

Niall McGinn meanwhile, has scored his goals in bursts this season and so the fact that he’s struck three times in three outings bodes well here. The Aberdeen attacker is a 2/1 shot at Stan James to get on the scoresheet at any time.